On Friday, BMW revealed the next-generation X5 plug-in hybrid, with significantly more electric range and a 6-cylinder engine replacing the 4-cylinder in the current X5 plug-in hybrid. Based on the new third-generation X5, BMW says theX5 xDrive45e iPerformance will have up to 50 miles of electric range from an expanded battery pack that sits...
Using new battery-pack architecture, BMW battery supplier Lion Smart has crammed tripled the battery capacity into a BMW i3s. Lion Smart's 100-kiloowatt-hour battery gives the little city car a range of 435 miles on a charge, in the same footprint as the original battery pack. Lion Smart has developed a modular battery-pack design that makes...
Not content to merely revive E-Types to their former glory, Jaguar will retrofit them as fully electric machines, but it will be costly: $375,000 or more if you don’t supply the car.
Not content to merely revive E-Types to their former glory, Jaguar will retrofit them as fully electric machines, but it will be costly: $375,000 or more if you don’t supply the car.
Ford teases its forthcoming Mustang-inspired electric crossover SUV once expected to be called the Mach 1. Volvo introduces its idea for self-driving electric cars with the 360c concept. Electric cars steal sales from hybrid vehicles. And Ford requests an exception to electric-car noise rules. All of this and more on Green Car Reports. Ford...
Ford released a teaser image of its hotly-anticipated 300-mile electric SUV, which it says will no longer be called the Mach 1. The company previewed the car at a closed event in March, but wouldn't allow photographs or sketches. The sketch released Thursday of the rear of the car hasn't evolved much from the design the company showed in March...
As part of a sweeping update on General Motors' electric-car plans, CEO Mary Barra announced the company will expand production and sales of the Chevy Bolt EV. At the same time, GM is expanding battery production for the Bolt EV from South Korea to a new factory in Michigan. In a blog post on LinkedIn on Wednesday, Barra laid out the company's...
It's tough to sneak up on bad guys in a loud car. That's Ford's argument in requesting an exception to a long-awaited rule that will require electric cars to make noise when they're driving at low speeds, according to a report in The Verge. First proposed in 2010, the rule has had a long gestation, and is set to finally take effect in 2020. Many...
With its latest self-driving car concept, Volvo wants to take on the airline industry. Without a need for a steering wheel, Volvo opened up the interior of its 360c concept to accommodate a coffee table, a card table, a desk, and even a first-class airline-style bed. The company says the self-driving capability and Ikea-like interior furnishings...
Strong sales of electric cars and plug-in hybrids in California seem to have a downside. According to an analysis by the California New Car Dealers Association, all of those new plug-in cars are replacing traditional hybrids, not conventional cars. So the fuel and emissions savings aren’t what they could be. Data from the CNCDA’s...
Mercedes-Benz reveals the EQC electric crossover SUV. Tesla's "big surprise" for an auto show is yet another Roadster mockup. Toyota recalls the Prius for a fire risk. Mercedes-Benz retracts and updates the EQC's electric range—revealed just hours earlier. And the results are in from one of our latest Twitter polls. All of this and more on...
Toyota is launching one of its largest recalls on one of its most popular models—the Prius hybrid. Covering all Toyota Prius and Prius Plug-in models built between June 2015 and May 2018, the recall involves a wiring harness for the car's hybrid power control unit, which can chafe and start a fire, the company told Reuters. The problem...
Tesla made a lot of noise about a big surprise it planned for the Grand Basel auto show, a celebration of architecture and design in Switzerland's northern industrial city. The company teased that it might show a new pre-production prototype of its new Roadster. The much-hyped car has twice appeared in running form, once at its official debut in...
On Tuesday, Mercedes-Benz revealed initial specs for its EQC mid-size electric SUV, with a quoted range of 200 miles from an 80-kilowatt-hour battery pack. Now, perhaps following criticism that 200 miles won't make its new electric SUV competitive even with older offerings, the company updated its range estimate in a statement to Green Car...
Green Car Reports readers sometimes leave themselves open to having extreme viewpoints. Such were the results of last week's Twitter poll, when we asked: "Should classic cars be converted to electric power?" We asked the question following what seemed like a rash of announcements of people doing exactly that, from established automakers to...
Mercedes-Benz released initial specs of its newest electric car, the EQC crossover SUV, Tuesday in Stockholm. The answer to the inevitable range question about its rival to the Jaguar I-Pace: "about 200 miles," Mercedes says. The SUV's 80-kwh lithium-ion battery sits under the floor between front and rear sub-frames. DON'T MISS: Mercedes EQC...
We take a broader look at the 2019 Honda Insight. GM works to create an ultra-fast charging system for the Chevrolet Bolt EV. We explain how readers can make themselves heard about the EPA's proposed freeze in fuel economy standards. And will electric cars displace hybrid vehicles? All of this and more on Green Car Reports. The 2019 Honda Insight...
![2004 Toyota Corolla, 2006 Toyota Prius, 2015 Nissan Leaf outside home [photo: John C. Briggs]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/2004-toyota-corolla-2006-toyota-prius-2015-nissan-leaf-outside-home-photo-john-c-briggs_100547120_t.gif)
A new report from California shows electric cars are replacing hybrids—not conventional, gas-only cars—on the roads. There could be many reasons for that, but the most obvious is that they're vying for the same buyers: early adopters who want to take a stand for the environment. Now that electric cars are available, many of those...
![Charging Chevy Bolt EV before trip across Maryland [image: Brian Ro]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/charging-chevy-bolt-ev-before-trip-across-maryland-image-brian-ro_100611273_t.gif)
Automakers are in a new race, not for miles per hour on a track or the street, but in miles per hour regained while an electric car is sitting at a charger. GM is the latest automaker to join the race toward faster-charging electric cars, with a new project to develop an "extreme fast charger" that can deliver up to 180 miles of range to a Chevy...
Drivers are not helpless in the face of government plans to roll back fuel economy standards. A joint August proposal from the EPA and NHTSA to freeze planned increases in fuel economy standards is out for public comments until Oct. 23. Public comments can make a difference. DON'T MISS: Trump administration releases proposal to weaken fuel...
